Tennis does Christmas! Carols to 2015's tennis best

Let cord bells, Hawk-eye tells,Ready, Set and Play!Oh what fun it was to watch,this season unfold away.A look at the 2015 tennis season in the spirit of the season.

#1 Rafael Nadal!

Rafael Nadal

Joy to the World, Nadal is come!

Let clay receive her king;In Rome and Madrid, prepare him room,And Roland Garros to win,And Roland Garros to win,And Coupe de Mosuqutaires toooo win!

What every Rafael Nadal fan, and even many tennis fans, would be hoping to see again in the 2016 clay season – A Rafa trifecta on clay. In the season gone by, for the first time since 2005 Rafael Nadal did not win a single European clay court title. This, amidst the rest of the relatively early defeats in many tournaments, underscored the deplorable season that Rafael Nadal had in 2015.

But all hope is not lost. Right towards the end of the season, he had a noticeable rise in his performance. He reached the final in Basel and went undefeated in the group stage of the World Tour Finals. A realignment of priorities is on cards for Nadal with his age pushing 30. He is likely to focus more on the grand slams and further his tally of 14 and push towards the record. As has been all through his career, the core of his season will be the European clay court swing. Joy to the Mallorcan!

#2 Murray Christmas!

1. Deck the courts with swears of Andy,

F****w***b*** la la la.‘Twas the Season of the Grumpy,F****w***b*** la la la.

Hail the victory of Great Britain,F****w***b*** la la la.

Deck the courts with swears of Andy,F****w***b*** la la la.

In a classic yearlong display of all things Andy (lost the Australian Open final, reached quarter-finals or better in all slams, singlehandedly carried the Great Britain team to Davis Cup success, went without a major title), perhaps the most noticeable aspect of his game was all the cussing and berating and swearing. And it wasn’t just Andy either.

‘Fiance at the time’ Kim Sears made the headlines as well for putting several dollars in the swear jar. In a fiery semi-final clash against Tomas Berdych, there was much tension in the air than usual. In the preseason, Andy’s coach had departed and teamed up with Berdych. And all indications did not suggest that the split was amicable.

As the temperatures soared and both players had a minor skirmish on the court. But it was Kim who stole the show with a flurry of F bombs towards the end of the first set.

As the media attention grew, Kim literally wore the incident on her sleeve as she turned up for the final with a t-shirt that read, ‘PARENTAL ADVISORY – Explicit Content’. Well played Kim. And well played Andy.

#3 Ave Maria!

Ave Maria! Ave Maria! Maiden mild!Listen to a maiden's cry!Thou can hear thou from the wild,Thou can’t serve amid despair.Up against Serena, thou are too scared,Though banish'd, destroyed and cast aside -Maiden! hear ye self’s a prayer;Maria, hear thou warrior cry!Ave Maria!

The year in which Maria Sharapova last defeated Serena Williams, George Bush had just started his 2nd term as the POTUS. The film version of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was released. Lionel Messi made his Barcelona first team debut at the age of 17.

Fernando Alonso was the Formula One champion.

Construction of the Burj Dubai has just started and Lost had aired its first season.

In the 17 matches since then, Maria Sharapova has won a total of 2 sets against Serena Williams. They met twice again this year. Both were significant matches. The first was the final of the Australian Open which Serena won in straight sets. The second was the semi-final at Wimbledon, which Serena won in again in … umm … straight sets. How do you solve a problem like this, Maria?!

#4 \'Tis the season of Serena-ty!

Long time ago, in Eighty Eight,So all the legends say.Steffi won the Grand Slam,and a Queen was made that day.

Hark now here, in Twenty Fifteen,A Queen was almost made.The record will live for evermore,Because of Vinci’s play.

Oh Roberta! You caused one of the most enormous crashes of all time on the tennis tickets market! Serena’s journey towards becoming the first woman since Steffi Graf in 1988 to win the calendar year slam was the biggest talking point all year.

And tickets to the finals were selling at exorbitant rates on the market. With each win, Serena edged closer and closer to the Holy Grail of tennis records and the prices of the tickets soared. And when all the top seeds were knocked out, the world prepared itself for the big day.

Then, on a fine Thursday evening in September, Roberta Vinci defeated Serena and killed an economy. Even Roberta was shocked as she bluntly said that she actually didn’t believe she would win.

On the other side of the court, Serena called quits on the remainder of her season. The burden of the record clearly showed on her. Serena finally succumbed on the biggest stage and time off is probably just what she needs to get 2016 off to a flying start.

#5 The First Novak

Djokovic joined several other ATP stars to carol this year

On the first day of the season my Djoker gave to me, the year-end No. 1 trophy!

On the second day of the season my Djoker gave to me, a two sets to love down comeback, and the year-end No. 1 trophy!

On the third day of the season my Djoker gave to me, three Grand Slam titles, a two sets to love down comeback, and the year-end No. 1 trophy!

On the fourth day of the season my Djoker gave to me, Four consecutive Major finals, three Grand Slam titles, a two sets to love down comeback, and the year-end No. 1 trophy.

On the fifth day of the season my Djoker gave to me, Five wins over Roger, Four consecutive Major finals, three Grand Slam titles, a two sets to love down comeback, and the year-end No. 1 trophy.

On the sixth day of the Season the my Djoker gave to me, Six ATP Masters 1000 titles, Five wins over Roger, Four consecutive Major finals, three Grand Slam titles, a two sets to love down comeback, and the year-end No. 1 trophy.

On the seventh day of the season my Djoker gave to me, Seven thousand points clear in the rankings, Six ATP Masters 1000 titles, Five wins over Roger, Four consecutive Major finals, three Grand Slam titles, a two sets to love down comeback, and the year-end No. 1 trophy.

On the eighth day of the season my Djoker gave to me, Eight ATP Masters 1000 finals, Seven thousand points clear in the rankings, Six ATP Masters 1000 titles, Five wins over Roger, Four consecutive Major finals, three Grand Slam titles, a two sets to love down comeback, and the year-end No. 1 trophy.

On the ninth day of the season my Djoker gave to me, a win over Nine time French Open champion, Eight ATP Masters 1000 finals, Seven thousand points clear in the rankings, Six ATP Masters 1000 titles, Five wins over Roger, Four consecutive Major finals, three Grand Slam titles, a two sets to love down comeback, and the year-end No. 1 trophy.

On the Tenth day of the season my Djoker gave to me, 31 wins over Top Ten opponents, a win over Nine time French Open champion, Eight ATP Masters 1000 finals, Seven thousand points clear in the rankings, Six ATP Masters 1000 titles, Five wins over Roger, Four consecutive Major finals, three Grand Slam titles, a two sets to love down comeback, and the year-end No. 1 trophy.